Page 12 of Rafa's Convenient Wife

Hating to see his mother in so much pain, he crossed the parlor, stopping every few feet to speak with guests. He found his younger siblings, Lola and Beto, talking with the head of their diocese. The bishop had been a near-constant presence in the house since the news of Jaime and Maddie’s death reached Mexico. He was glad to have the support of Bishop Guerrero, especially for his mother who found such solace in her faith.

Dina stood near a window with Camila. His niece seemed so young and frail as she clung to her mother, and Rafael wished he could take everyone’s pain away. He wished he could go back in time. He wished he had shown up earlier, stopping Jaime and Maddie from leaving San Antonio on Jaime’s plane.

But wishes weren’t real—and this nightmare was.

The sound of Beverly's dramatic howling in a corner where she was surrounded by her cloying friends grated on his nerves. In all the years he had known Beverly, she had been a functioning alcoholic. Now, she seemed to be mixing pills in with the booze.She was a loud, demanding mess who made everything more difficult than it needed to be.

She had been causing trouble ever since he had called with the news of the missing plane. As soon as she left her spa retreat, she tried to wrest control of the situation from him. Instead of letting their PR people handle the news, Beverly had made a spectacle of herself by sharing videos on social media where she sobbed hysterically and accused an invisible enemy of sabotaging Jaime’s plane. Even after Dina scolded her, Beverly continued giving wildly inaccurate information and conspiracy theories that caused a dustup with the Coast Guard and their recovery mission.

Judging by the perturbed look on Dina’s face, she wanted to send Beverly back across the border with a swift kick to her backside. His sister glared across the room and widened her eyes as if to tell him to handle Beverly. He hadn’t ever asked why Dina disliked Beverly so much, but he figured it was for the same reasons everyone else did. Maddie's mother was just a hateful, mean, and dramatic person.

“Rafael!” Beverly snapped her fingers at him. “Come here!”

Stupefied by her audacity, he stood still as guests looked on in shock and distaste. Dina was about five seconds away from hauling Beverly by the collar of her red blouse. Wanting to avoid that outcome, he crossed the room to join Beverly. The last thing he wanted was for his mother to witness an ugly scene. “Yes?”

She handed her empty glass to the younger man he assumed was her boyfriend and waved him off like a servant. “When are we reading the will?”

“Excuse me?” It was the last thing he had expected her to ask, but maybe it shouldn’t have been. The woman was tacky as hell.

“The will,” Beverly repeated as if he were hard of hearing.

He was unsettled by the strange way her mouth barely moved and the stiffness in her cheeks and forehead. “I heard you. I’m asking why you think we would read the will after the funeral.”

“Well, I need to know what I’m entitled to once I take Jasper back home.”

Rafael went rigid. Was this woman out of her mind? Did she really think he was going to let her take Jasper? “You’re not taking my nephew anywhere.”

The words came out harsher than intended, and Beverly tensed. “I’m not asking your permission, Rafael. He’s my grandson, and he’s coming back to Los Angeles with me.”

“No, he’s not.” Rafael remained outwardly calm as anger boiled within him. “He stays here with his family.”

“I’m his family!”

“Since when? Huh? When was the last time you even saw him in person? The day after he was born?”

“I have a very busy schedule! I see him every day when I video chat Maddie!”

The way she could so boldly lie right to his face only proved what an outrageously shameless woman she was. “Really? So, if we go through Maddie’s phone records, we’ll see evidence of all these calls and chats?”

“Well, knowing how corrupt this whole place is,” she gestured wildly around the room, “I’m sure you’ve already had your people wipe her phone records.”

“You are out of your mind.” He stared at her with a mix of contempt and pity. She truly had fallen down a rabbit hole of fake news and conspiracies, probably fueled by her alcoholic benders. “Jasper is a Farias, and he stays here.”

“We’ll see about that!” Beverly shot to her feet and marched across the parlor to where Sky held Jasper. “Give me my grandson!”

Sky flinched and held a little tighter to Jasper. “He’s sleeping, Beverly.”

“And you’re the only one who can hold him while he sleeps?” She reached for Jasper, but his mother intervened and blocked her grasping hand.

“The baby is sleeping, Beverly. You can hold him when he wakes up.”

“When he wakes up, I’m taking him back to Los Angeles with me,” Beverly snarled.

His mother glanced at him with panic and worry. “Rafa?”

“No, she’s not.” He closed the distance with powerful strides. Dina was quick to mirror his movement, and Lola and Beto came from the other side of the room. “I’ve already been very clear that Jasper is staying here.”

“He is my grandson, and he’s an American citizen! If you think I’m going to leave him here with your cartel whore sister, you are crazy!”

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